


Sell-Outs and Leftovers

by Remmy-AoT (Remembrance)



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Complete, Complicated Relationships, Cute, Difficulties, Exes, M/M, Moving On, Rivarmin Fest, Shit Jokes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-10
Updated: 2014-06-16
Packaged: 2018-02-04 05:00:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1766401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Remembrance/pseuds/Remmy-AoT
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With a hopeless crush on his best friend, Armin needs to get away from it all. He bumps into Levi, Eren's ex-boyfriend, and the two hit it off. Armin's not an idiot, though: He knows Levi's using him to get back at Eren. But…</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I: Quiet

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Am-A-Brownie](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Am-A-Brownie).



> This is a birthday fic for [Brownie](http://am-a-brownie.tumblr.com/) (if you like Rivarmin, check out his blog!). I'm also doubling this up as my contribution to [Rivarmin Fest](http://rivarminfest.tumblr.com/)! The rest of this fic is written, two more chapters, and I will be posting them on the first and last days of Rivarmin Fest (June 13th and June 15th) because that's symbolic or something... right? Chapter titles are conveniently named after the three prompts of Riv' Fest ~~(even if they might not have anything to do with the chapters themselves, lmao—again, symbolic... right?)~~.

* * *

 

 

“Maybe I need to get out more… maybe find a guy, or something, you know? ‘Cause I’ve just been frustrated since… you know… Maybe that’s what’s good for me. What do you think?”  
  
Armin kept washing the dishes, scratching at dried pasta sauce with his fingernails under the hot water.  
  
“Hey, are you even listening?”  
  
“Me?” Armin looked over his shoulder to see Eren staring right at him. “Yeah. I’m listening.”  
  
“What do you think?”  
  
Armin looked at the plate again and shrugged. Deeming it clean enough, he placed the plate in the dishwasher and turned off the hot water. It wasn’t a strong dishwasher. He swiped his hands at the sink, letting the water fly off, before he grabbed a towel and dried his hands. “I don’t know.”  
  
Eren frowned and crossed his arms. “Really? Come on… You’re incredible and you’re smart and you always help me out with this stuff.”  
  
Armin’s cheeks warmed at the compliment and a shy smile graced his lips. “Thank you…”  
  
“So!” Eren grabbed both his hands.  
  
Armin looked down, seeing how much smaller his hands were compared to Eren’s, seeing how perfectly they seemed to fit in his. He felt a thrill he shouldn’t have felt and his throat tightened in a way it shouldn’t have tightened. He looked up to see Eren’s green eyes—intense—looking at him. He swallowed hard and smiled. “I’m sure there’s… I’m sure there’s someone out here, who really wants to be with you. You just, you have to look a little closer…”  
  
Eren stared into Armin’s blue eyes and leaned in.  
  
Armin’s heart surged and his eyes widened.  
  
Eren hugged him.  
  
Armin deflated.  
  
“You’re a genius!” Eren squeezed him before backing away and turning around. “I just have to keep looking!”  
  
Armin’s eyes dropped to the floor and he turned around. He hit the faucet handle again, turning the water on, and grabbed another dish. Eren kept talking, but Armin just washed the dishes. Truthfully, he was half listening. He figured he knew what his best friend was going to say anyway. He could have told Eren to shut up, as he really wanted to, but there were three main reasons he didn’t.  
  
One, Eren had to get it out of his system.  
  
Two, he knew his best friend had to come to the same usual conclusion himself.  
  
Three, it would kill the non-existent chance that maybe Eren would eventually figure out who the person Armin was hinting at was—  
  
“So!” Eren said loudly, “I’m thinking, maybe I should try to find a way to meet guys? I mean I can’t think of anything. Dating website? You have to be eighteen for those. I mean I’m seventeen. That’s age of consent. And I could just lie, but you remember what happened to Historia when she did that? That girl she met didn’t want anything to do with her when she found out she lied.”  
  
“But she’s with Ymir now,” Armin pointed out. “It all worked out.”  
  
“Yeah… true…” Eren frowned. “But after my last train wreck of a relationship, I want something simple.”  
  
Train wreck of a relationship… Armin didn’t comment. Oh, how he wished he did. He would have gone on and on about all the good things they had done for each other. In the tenth months Eren and Levi had been dating, they spent nine of them being perfect in every way. Armin hadn’t been jealous: He was too depressed for jealousy. The worst part was, when they finally broke up, he thought maybe Eren and he could… But nonetheless, Eren talked about his past relationship as everyone talked about their last relationship, only remembering the part they wanted to remember at that time.  
  
“Armin?”  
  
“Huh?” He looked over his shoulder.  
  
Eren examined him for a moment. “Are you okay?”  
  
“Fine,” Armin said with a small smile. “I just didn’t sleep well last night. That’s all.”  
  
“Okay, if you say so.”  
  
Before Eren could go any further, Carla stepped in and glanced around. “Oh, Armin dear, you don’t have to do the dishes.”  
  
“It’s okay.” Armin actually smiled. “I’m almost done. Thank you again for the dinner, Carla.”  
  
Carla put her hands on her hips. “Armin, you don’t have to thank me for that. You know that.”  
  
Armin only dipped his head respectfully.  
  
  
  
The rest of the evening went by uneventfully, until Armin tried to leave. He spent most of his time at Eren’s place, including spending the night in their guest room seven days a week. His own home wasn’t exactly family material, so he got worrying looks from Carla, Grisha, and Eren. Although Mikasa also gave him a concerned look, there was something in her eyes that hinted that she might have known where he was going. After all, she was close friends with Annie.  
  
Armin had gone home to change. He chose a light blue shirt, same colour as his eyes, then wore a thin black hoodie overtop. Paired with dark blue skinny jeans that hugged his legs and ass in almost illegal ways. He finished his outfit with a silver dog tag necklace.  
  
He met Annie at the gas station on the east corner of their small town.  
  
She was sitting on a bench in black jeans and a brown leather jacket, legs crossed as she texted away.  
  
“Sorry,” Armin muttered. “I didn’t keep you waiting, did I?”  
  
She looked up and offered one of her rare small smiles. “No.” She pulled out her wallet and then a card. She handed it over. “Check it out.”  
  
Armin grabbed the card and turned around so the streetlight gave him a better view. “Holy shit. It even has the gloss for the photos.”  
  
“Mhm.” Annie nodded. “It’s probably my best one.”  
  
Armin pulled out his wallet and stuffed it in. He pulled out a couple bills and handed them over. “Forty five, right?”  
  
Annie quickly counted and nodded. “Yeah. I have one more thing for you, bud.”  
  
Armin blinked. “Huh?”  
  
She pulled out a small canister that fit easily in the palm of her hand. “Here. In case a guy gets aggressive with you. Spray it in their eyes.”  
  
Armin took it with a skeptical look. “Annie…”  
  
“If you don’t use it, fine.” Annie shrugged. “But if there’s a time you need it, it’s good to have it on you. It’s not a dangerous club, but when a guy tried to get… aggressive with Bert, he was lucky Reiner was there. If you’re going alone, just take it.”  
  
“Sure.” Armin figured he wouldn’t need it, but Annie was right. Safety first.  
  
“Don’t leave your drink alone.”  
  
“I know, Annie.”  
  
“Don’t drink too much, either.”  
  
Armin just gave her a look.  
  
Annie shrugged.  
  
Armin smiled softly. “Thanks for caring, though.”  
  
“I don’t,” Annie muttered.  
  
She wasn’t fooling anyone.  
  
  
  
Armin felt his heart beat fast as he turned the corner and saw the line up to the club. He got in queue and moved forward every couple of minutes until he was in front of the bouncer. He reminded himself to play it cool. When the bouncer asked for his ID, he offered it and waited. He was given it back and he did his best to keep his face straight.  
  
Green light.  
  
Armin stepped in and looked around.  
  
The club was a lot darker than he expected, but he wasn’t too surprised by that.  
  
It was only then that Armin Arlert realised he had no idea what people did at clubs.  
  
He stood by the wall and watched people on the dance floor. Being a club tailored to gay men, most of the people were guys, but there were women as well. He looked around and saw a bar on the far side. It was lit up with pretty bright blue lights and he figured that was a good place to start. But as he walked closer he noticed every seat was taken. He pursed his lips and hugged his arms. He noticed a couple pair of eyes on him but none lasted more than a second. He looked around and noticed blue lights going upwards.  
  
Stairs.  
  
He decided to check out the second floor. One step at a time, he eventually made it to the top. It was mostly deserted. A couple tables, few patrons, but nothing much. It was a balcony and he looked over the dance floor. He took a seat and looked up to the high ceiling. He stared at it for almost five minutes before he sighed and dropped his face in his hands. “What am I even doing here?”  
  
“Good question.”  
  
Armin jolted up, out of his seat and turned around.  
  
“Weren’t you still sixteen?”  
  
Armin swallowed hard.  
  
Levi.  
  
“Um…” Armin’s voice went small, “Uh…”  
  
Levi rolled his eyes and walked over to the railing. “It’s a yes or no question, dipshit.”  
  
Armin sighed.  
  
Levi crossed his arms and turned to face Armin. He leaned his hip on the railing and stared at Armin. “Eren’s seventeen, turning eighteen. You’re a year younger than him, right? But same grade?”  
  
Armin nodded. “I skipped third grade because I was gifted.”  
  
Levi smirked. “Lucky you.”  
  
“Not really.” Armin looked down at the crowd and scratched his cheek. “I studied all day because I didn’t have any hobbies, and I didn’t have any friends, and when I skipped a grade everyone made fun of me because I was small and…” He looked up. “Sorry. You probably don’t care.”  
  
Levi actually smiled. “I get that. They made fun of me too.”  
  
“Made fun of you?” Armin blinked. “You just yell and scare everyone and call them shit heads. Why did they make fun of you?”  
  
“Same reason.”  
  
Armin stared.  
  
Levi laughed, low and dark, a smooth chuckle. “I’ve always been small… I just didn’t realise I could punch someone in the face to make them shut up until sixth grade.”  
  
Armin smiled and hugged his arm.  
  
Levi glanced at him. “That doesn’t answer the question of what the fuck are you doing here, Alert?”  
  
“Arlert.” Armin shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just here because I’ve never been to a club, thought I could get out… I don’t know. I kind of want to go home.”  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow. “If you’re here to club you might as well club. Come on, I’ll buy you a drink.”  
  
  
  
Armin wasn’t sure why Levi was being nice to him—after all, Armin was Eren’s best friend, and Levi and Eren ended on an… extremely… sour, note. But Levi ordered him a drink. A girl’s drink. Not that Armin minded; in fact, he assumed it was probably more acceptable to drink a girly drink then a manly drink at a gay club. It was called a white something; he didn’t catch the name, something about a shot of vodka, cream, and Kahlua? He wasn’t sure.  
  
But it tasted nice, and it was warm and creamy.  
  
“Don’t drink too fast,” Levi warned as he cocked his head back, tossing two shots of vodka in his mouth. He swallowed with ease and put the cup down. “If you drink it without breathing in between sips, you’re sure to get hammered.”  
  
Armin nodded, taking a slower sip. “Thanks, by the way.”  
  
Levi nodded.  
  
“So um…” Armin stirred his drink. “How’s college? You were taking engineering, right?”  
  
“Mhm. But I switched my program.” Levi tapped the bar and the bartender filled his glass. “Well not really switched programs, I’m just doing the honours version since I managed to get my GPA up.”  
  
“Nice.” Armin smiled. “But you need to write an honours thesis for that, right?”  
  
“Mhm.” Levi glanced at him. “How do you know that?”  
  
“I’ve been looking into it,” he admitted. “My only choices for uni’s are local ones, so I’ve been looking into the programs.”  
  
“Shit.” Levi shook his head. “You probably have your life on better tracks than I do.”  
  
“It all depends on scholarships,” Armin muttered. “My parents aren’t going to give me a dime, and I couldn’t ask Eren’s parents… I work part time, but I can do two full time jobs in the summer. If I work summers and work part time while studying, I might be able to get my masters from honours scholarships, and…” Armin realised he was babbling again. “Sorry.” He sipped his drink.  
  
Levi took his shots quickly and swallowed. “Why do you do that?”  
  
“Huh?”  
  
“Always cut yourself off?”  
  
“Um… because you probably don’t care?”  
  
Levi shrugged. “You’re right. I don’t.”  
  
Armin found the shot of honesty almost as refreshing as another sip of alcohol. “So… wanna dance?”  
  
Levi just stared at him.  
  
“That’s what people do at clubs,” he glanced to the dance floor, “Right?”  
  
Levi kept staring.  
  
Armin finished his drink. His eyes lingered over Levi. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it wasn’t, but, “Dance with me.”  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow. “Dealing with Eren made me realise I want nothing with brats, kid.”  
  
“I might be a kid, but I’m not a brat.”  
  
“Every brat is convinced they’re not a brat, Armin.”  
  
Armin looked at him for a half a minute. “Do you think I’m a brat?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“Honestly?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
Armin shrugged. “Okay, then I’m a brat.”  
  
Levi licked his lower lips and chuckled. “You really want to go in that crowd that probably smells like shit wearing too much deodorant and dance?”  
  
“Why not? If I’m here to club I might as well club.”  
  
Levi let another low laugh and slipped off his seat. “Fine.”  
  
Armin grinned.  
  
  
  
They made their way through the crowd. Levi took Armin’s hand and dragged him onto the floor. Armin listened to the beats of the song, feeling the vibe move under his skin, energising the pulse in his blood. When they found a decent clearing, Levi turned around, and Armin just let go. He moved his hips to the rhythm, rocking his whole body in tune to the song.  
  
Levi danced as well, and his hands slid up Armin’s sides.  
  
Armin raised his arms, over his head, moving his body in the dark blur of the club. A soft blue light was in their general area, lighting up Levi’s face for him to see. He melted to the sway as they danced, bodies moving against each other. Armin bit his lip as he felt his thighs quiver. They moved in tune, two notes being hit at the same time, a duet, synchronised, harmonised.  
  
Levi hovered his face only centimetres away from Armin’s, and the distance between them seemed ever shrinking.  
  
Armin brought his arms down, wrapping them around Levi’s neck. He pressed their foreheads together and looked into his eyes.  
  
Levi’s hands slid like a serpent around Armin’s waist, constricting to bring his prey closer.  
  
Armin closed his eyes, bit his lip, and the shiest of smiles made itself known on his lips. He was getting hard. He kept in time to the beat, opening his blue eyes to look into Levi’s.  
  
Levi felt the blond getting hard against his crotch and he smirked.  
  
That smirk threatened to make Armin’s heart stop right there. He’d caught glimpses of it before when it was aimed at Eren, but now, it was aimed at him—it was _for_ him. Beneath his black skinny jeans and tight boxers, he felt his cock twitch and his toes curled. But that wasn’t what warmed his cheeks. The reason he started blushing was because he could feel Levi hard against him.  
  
Levi grinded their hips together; the friction was electric, chemistry in volts, surging through his bloodstream. He pulled Armin even closer; he was chest-to-chest, head-to-head, crotch-to-crotch. In the blackness of the club they could have been mistaken for one person, but the roars of the crowds around them meant nothing—right then, between Armin and Levi, they were the only two that even existed.  
  
The song fluidly changed, but the DJ kept the beat mostly the same.  
  
The two of them didn’t need to adjust their dance. They just fell right into the rhythm of the next song.  
  
Armin’s cheeks were red and he closed his eyes as he let out a soft noise.  
  
Levi’s smirk only grew more feral. No matter how loud the pounding of the music was, that soft noise repeated in his ear. He was the one who made Armin moan. He wondered just far he could go with only dancing.  
  
Armin knew he shouldn’t have, but he pushed his mouth onto Levi’s.  
  
Eyes widening, Levi’s eyebrows shot up, but he smiled into the kiss and relaxed his face. He could actually feel the red heat of Armin’s blush from the kiss.  
  
Armin felt his insides melt and he muffled a sweet noise into the kiss.  
  
Levi broke the kiss and smirked.  
  
“Fuck,” Armin whispered.  
  
“What?”  
  
“Nothing, it’s just… you can really, _kiss_ …”  
  
Levi cocked his head to the side and leaned in to whisper into Armin’s ear, “I can do a lot of other things.”  
  
Armin’s spine went straight and his eyes widened. Flagrant fantasy after fantasy flashed before his fickle eyes. “N-No…”  
  
Levi stopped, and their dance came to a halt. “No?”  
  
Armin bit his lip and backed away half a step. Arms still around each other, they were still close enough. “Sorry, I just… I mean I want to, but…” _Eren._ “Sorry. I think I ruined it.”  
  
“It’s fine, let’s get out of here. Smells bad anyway.”  
  
  
  
Levi didn’t seem pissed, which was a good thing. Armin let the older guy drag him out of the club. They walked out and the smell of fresh air was appreciated. Armin noticed Levi didn’t let go of his hand until they made their way to a motorcycle in the parking lot.  
  
“Hey,” Levi muttered, “Want to grab something to eat?”  
  
“Eat?” Armin repeated the word and reminded himself he was a fucking idiot.  
  
“I’m not asking you out on a date,” Levi clarified. “I’m just hungry. Wanna come? I’ll pay for your broke ass. It’s free food.”  
  
“Sure.” His blue eyes glanced to the bike. He’d seen it hundreds of times before when Eren and Levi were together, but he never actually rode it.  
  
Levi offered him a helmet.  
  
Armin put it on.  
  
Levi got on the bike and cocked his head back, motioning for Armin to get on the bitch seat.  
  
Armin did as he was instructed and slipped his arms around Levi’s waist. The motorcycle roared to life beneath him and he squeezed Levi when they started moving. He rested his head on Levi’s shoulder, silently thinking about how an older guy with a motorcycle was every fantasy he had ever had, and it all would have been perfect if Levi hadn’t been his best friend’s ex…  
  
  
  
Levi had his eyebrow raised the entire time while he watched Armin eat. Armin used a knife to slice his burger in half, first, and then carefully ate it in slow bites to make sure nothing fell out. When he compared it to how Eren shoved all food in his mouth like a demonic tornado, he found himself silently appreciating how Armin was neither primitive nor uncivilised. He took a bite of his own burger, chewed, and swallowed. “How is it?”  
  
Armin looked up and wiped his lips with a napkin. “It’s great!” He grinned. “I think this is the best burger I’ve ever had.”  
  
Levi smiled. “Good. At least you can respect good food.”  
  
Armin raised an eyebrow. “You mean you know someone who didn’t think this was amazing?”  
  
“Mhm. Your best friend.” Levi shrugged as he leaned back in his seat of the diner. “I think he said something like, ‘All burgers taste the same to me’?”  
  
Armin gigglesnorted—and then quickly covered his nose with his hand.  
  
Levi smiled softly and looked out the window to downtown’s city life.  
  
“Yeah that’s… that’s Eren.”  
  
“Hm. Yeah.” Levi felt something in his gut, so he changed the subject. “So where do you work?”  
  
“Huh? Me?”  
  
“No the other person I’m talking to. Yes. You.”  
  
Armin looked at his food. “I uh, I work at a frozen yogurt place. Yozzu, if you know it?”  
  
Levi thought about it. “That the one with the pink tarp and aprons?”  
  
“Mhm.” Armin nodded, clearly not happy about it.  
  
Levi chuckled. “I bet you look cute with it.”  
  
“I don’t think so,” Armin admitted.  
  
“Hm… Maybe I should come by and check you out.”  
  
Armin’s eyes lit up. “I-If you drop by the store… I could, give you a discount…”  
  
  
  
“Where am I dropping you off, Eren’s?”  
  
“Uh, no. My place. It’s just down the road.”  
  
“Your place?”  
  
“My parents’ house.”  
  
“You have your own place? I thought you just lived at Eren’s like Mikasa.”  
  
“I have my own family, I would just… rather not.”  
  
“Huh. Okay.”  
  
  
  
“Here?”  
  
The motorcycle came to a halt and Armin slipped off the bitch seat. He took his helmet off and offered it to Levi.  
  
Levi laughed. “Your hair’s fucking messed up.”  
  
Armin did his best to flatten it but it defied all order.  
  
Levi kicked off his bike and took his own helmet off. He walked Armin to the front door, which was a couple steps upward, before Levi paused in front of the door. With his mouth closed, he licked at the inside of lower teeth before glancing to Armin. “Can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I had fun tonight. So… thanks, I guess.”  
  
Armin grinned. “I had fun too.”  
  
“We should…” Levi looked away. “We should do this again.”  
  
Armin’s smile faded and he swallowed hard. “I’d like that…”  
  
Levi leaned in.  
  
Armin closed his eyes.  
  
Their lips met, however it was chaste.  
  
“I told myself I wouldn’t date anymore fucking brats, but…” Levi shrugged. “You have my number, right?”  
  
“Yeah.” Armin felt his chest squeeze.  
  
Levi nodded, figuring that said all that needed to be said before he walked down the steps.  
  
Armin opened the front door and watched Levi drive off.  
  
  
  
In the dark of his room, Armin stripped to his boxers, putting every article of clothing down quietly, not wanting to wake his parents. He slipped under the covers of his bed, which he hadn’t actually been inside for several months, and laid his head on the pillow. Unlike his room at Eren’s house, he didn’t have a teddy bear to hold, so he grabbed his pillow and hugged it tight.  
  
Through the cracks of his actions, the guilt began to seep in.  
  
“I’m going behind Eren’s back,” he realised aloud. “Well, no…” He squeezed his pillow. “I met him by chance… I’m only really going behind his back if I meet Levi again, but…”  
  
Armin wanted to see him again.


	2. II: Red

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so it continues!
> 
> * * *

“Who are you texting?”  
  
Armin looked up from his phone. A couple days had passed and he’d seen Levi once more in that time. Now, he was sitting at the kitchen table. Having finished his homework before Eren and Mikasa, as per usual, he was happily texting away in between being asked for help. “Um, no one.”  
  
“No one?” Eren tilted his head and grinned. “You’ve got that huge ass smile on your lips!”  
  
Armin felt his cheeks warm and he shrugged. “No I don’t…”  
  
“You do!” Eren chuckled. “Is it a special someone? Do you have your eyes on a girl?”  
  
Armin just stared.  
  
Mikasa let out the quietest, most pained noise known to man as she closed her eyes.  
  
Eren blinked and stared at her. “What?” He didn’t get a reply so he looked at Armin. “What?”  
  
Armin chewed on the inside of his cheek and just decided to blurt it out: “I’m gay, if you haven’t noticed.”  
  
Eren blinked three more times. “Really?”  
  
Mikasa let out another noise and went back to solving equations.  
  
“Hey!” Eren frowned. “How was I supposed to know if you didn’t tell me? You’re supposed to tell your best friend these things, you know I told you when I was—”  
  
“Eren,” Mikasa interrupted. “It’s obvious.”  
  
Eren kept frowning.  
  
Armin looked at Eren’s face and a trace of blue sadness swirled in his eyes before he forced a smile. “Well I’m gay, surprise, I guess.”  
  
“Really?” Eren tilted his head again. “I can’t see it.”  
  
Mikasa let out another noise, but it was sad this time.  
  
Armin forced a smile. “Surprise,” he repeated.  
  
“Wow.” Eren nodded. “Well you know I’ll support you in your gay quest to find the right boy for you.”  
  
Armin’s stomach twisted. “Thanks.”  
  
Eren chuckled some more and went back to his homework.  
  
Mikasa did the same.  
  
Armin went back to texting. But when he looked down he saw Levi had sent him a picture of him biting a pineapple for no reason. He burst into a giggle fit and quickly saved the picture. “He makes no sense.”  
  
Eren raised an eyebrow. “So it is a special someone—just a guy!”  
  
Armin’s cheeks warmed and he shook his head, blond hair flying everywhere.  
  
“Oh come on! Look at you, you’re smiling so much!”  
  
Armin felt his mouth and realised he was beaming and radiating with happiness.  
  
“You are,” Mikasa added. “It’s nice to see you happy.” She looked up from her notebook and glanced to Armin. “Are you staying the night here?”  
  
“Of course he is,” Eren interjected.  
  
Armin ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. I’m just going to go out for a bit with a friend; I’ll probably come back late, but I’ll be quiet.”  
  
Mikasa’s eyes narrowed. “Which friend?”  
  
Armin shrugged. “Just a friend.”  
  
Eren raised an eyebrow, then raised the other. “Huh?”  
  
Mikasa nodded slowly and dropped the topic.  
  
But Armin knew it wouldn’t be the last of her questions. Armin had never been religious, but he silently prayed she would understand eventually.  
  
  
  
Armin tied his hair back in a little ponytail and looked at himself in the mirror. He pursed his lips and wiggled it from one side of his lips to the other. He tilted his head and turned his body, trying to tell if he liked it more or less. His hair was getting a little long, which meant he either had to do something about it or get it cut. He liked long hair, though.  
  
From the mirror, he saw Eren behind him.  
  
“Cute get up.” Eren grinned and smacked his ass.  
  
Armin jumped and yelped. He turned around and glared daggers.  
  
“You’re my gay best friend, totally means I get to smack your ass when I want.”  
  
Armin pouted. “Only after a dinner and date.”  
  
Eren, not realising it wasn’t a joke, hugged Armin from behind and laughed. “Oh come on, you’re like a brother to me.” He kissed Armin’s cheek. “We could never be like that.”  
  
“Yeah, totally, I know…”  
  
Eren squeezed him a little bit more. “I’m happy you came out.”  
  
Armin shrugged a little. He closed his eyes. It was a little too easy to pretend in a hug that was a little too tight that they were a little too close for what they were. “Eh.” He opened his eyes again, staring at himself in the mirror. “I don’t know if I ‘came out’. I mean I never hid it, but sure. As long as you’re happy.”  
  
Eren let go and ruffled Armin’s hair.  
  
“Hey!” Armin pulled out his hairband and grabbed his comb, quickly straightening out his hair. He eventually stopped and looked at himself. “How do I look?”  
  
“Perfect.”  
  
Armin’s mouth went dry.  
  
Eren grinned. “You’re going to catch every guy who looks your way. So, who’s this special someone?”  
  
“A friend.” Armin shrugged. “Nothing more.” He turned around and quickly left the bathroom.  
  
  
  
Avoiding Eren for the rest of the evening was challenging, but he eventually put on a thick hoodie and stepped out of the house. He agreed to meet Levi a couple blocks from the Jaeger house, just because Eren would probably beat the shit out of Levi (or at least, he would try… If Mikasa didn’t stop him, Levi would win the fistfight with ease).  
  
Armin eventually saw the motorcycle waiting for him and he smiled.  
  
Levi had his helmet off, in his lap, absent-mindedly looking elsewhere as he waited.  
  
Armin stepped a bit closer.  
  
Levi turned towards him. “There you are.”  
  
“Sorry.” Armin dipped his head in apology. “I wanted to head out earlier, but it was just a bunch of questions. You didn’t wait long, I hope?”  
  
“Nah,” Levi lied. He turned his body and opened the compartment underneath the bitch seat before handing the second helmet to Armin.  
  
Armin took it and put it on before hopping on behind him. He wrapped his arms around Levi’s waist and leaned in.  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow before he hit the gas.  
  
  
  
“You don’t look like you want to go in.”  
  
Armin’s eyes widened as he glanced to the restaurant. “No, I do. I do.”  
  
Levi took his helmet off and leaned on his bike in the parking lot behind the restaurant. “Don’t kid yourself, Arlert, you look like a train wreck.”  
  
Armin looked at the ground.  
  
“Come here.”  
  
Armin sighed and took a step or two towards Levi.  
  
“Don’t be a constipated shit.” Levi hooked an arm around the blond’s waist and pulled him in. “What is it?”  
  
“You’re going to get the wrong idea, I promise.”  
  
“Try me.”  
  
Armin looked down at their feet then swallowed hard. He looked up and bit his lip. “So, I’ve kind of had this major crush on Eren since the third grade.”  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow.  
  
“And we’re both gay—well, we’re both into guys: He’s bi, I’m gay. When I was younger, I thought he and I would end up together. And since meeting you, I guess I just… I kinda realised, I don’t know. I mean we’re hanging out, and going to dinner together. That’s kind of a date, isn’t it?”  
  
Levi was silent for a couple seconds. “If you want it to be, it’ll be a date.”  
  
“Yeah. I want it to be a date.”  
  
Levi actually smiled. “Believe it or not, kid, I want this to be a date too.”  
  
“Great.” Armin grinned, but his grin faltered. “I guess, I kind of realised… I don’t know. I mean you’re Eren’s ex, and this is kind of going behind his back… which I sort of realise, I’m okay with. I’m okay with going behind his back, even if it makes me a horrible person, because for the first time I have a chance with someone and for the first time I’m actually… happy. But.”  
  
“But?”  
  
“I guess, today, I kind of realised if Eren finds out about this, then he’ll probably…”  
  
“Flip shit?”  
  
“Yeah.” Armin forced his smile. “And I’m not saying he won’t talk to me ever again, but I’ll just say it: Any chance of my idiotic dream of me and him being together are just gone, so today this all occurred to me, and I told him I was gay, and I kind of hinted at the idea of us being together… kind of a ‘last chance’ thing. And he was all surprised and said we were brothers, and there’s really only one way to take that so it’s kind of like I’m happy, and I’m happy you’re here, but I’m also sad because I realised I have no chance with a possibility that never existed, and…” He sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m just throwing this all on you.”  
  
“Wow,” Levi muttered. “Eren had no idea you were gay?”  
  
Armin let out a chuckle.  
  
“Eren’s… a good person…” Levi sighed. “He’s smart, too, but he can be dense on some things. Sometimes you have to spell it out for him.”  
  
Armin nodded.  
  
“But, I don’t know what to say, Arlert. Just get over him, because you’re only hurting yourself.”  
  
“I know.” Armin looked at him. “I feel bad, because it’s like I’m using you to get over him.”  
  
“Go for it.” Levi shrugged. “If it makes it easier, better, or faster, then use me.”  
  
Armin opened his mouth to say something, but closed it.  
  
Levi leaned in and pressed their lips together.  
  
Armin felt his cheeks warm as they shared a short kiss.  
  
“Now, I’m fucking freezing my shitty balls off. Let’s go inside, and let’s eat.”  
  
  
  
Dinner went well, very well, and now they were on their way back.  
  
“You sure you want me to drop you off here?”  
  
“Yeah.” Armin nodded. “Your motorcycle might wake up Eren’s parents.”  
  
Levi frowned. “I can park my bike here and walk you home at least.”  
  
Armin raised an eyebrow and danced from one foot to the other as he thought about it. “That would be, kind of nice actually.”  
  
  
  
Walking side by side, Armin hugged Levi’s arm. He leaned on the shorter man and smiled. “This is nice.”  
  
“Yeah.” Levi glanced up to the steps of Eren’s house. He went up the steps, Armin coming with him, until they made their way to the door.  
  
Armin turned to Levi, cheeks visibly pink even in the dark of the night. He wiggled on his heels and puckered lips his lips as he waited.  
  
Levi rolled his eyes and leaned in.  
  
Right as their lips touched, the door opened.  
  
Armin pulled away.  
  
Levi straightened his back.  
  
Mikasa stood at the doorway. “I was waiting for you, wanted to make sure you came home.”  
  
Armin’s face burned.  
  
Levi cleared his throat.  
  
Mikasa glanced to Levi, but paid him no mind. Her black eyes shifted back to Armin. “Carla and Grisha are asleep. Eren’s still awake.”  
  
“O-Oh, okay. Cool.” Armin swallowed hard and looked at Levi. “You should probably…”  
  
“Yeah,” Levi cleared his throat. “I should go. Later.”  
  
Mikasa watched him walk down the stairs.  
  
Armin forced a smile. “How much did you see?”  
  
“All of it.” Mikasa stepped away from the doorway. “Come on in. We should talk.”  
  
“Yes Ma’am…”  
  
  
  
With Eren gaming in the basement, Armin was led into the kitchen. He watched Mikasa grab a silver tin that held loose leaf decaffeinated black tea. He raised an eyebrow. “I thought you hate tea?”  
  
“I don’t hate it. I would drink it if you gave it to me.” Mikasa shrugged. “I’m making it because you like it.”  
  
Armin pursed his lips and took his usual seat at the kitchen table.  
  
Mikasa flicked on the kettle and scooped the tea into a small mesh filter. “So…”  
  
Armin cringed.  
  
“Was it a date?”  
  
“Um, yeah.”  
  
Mikasa nodded. She put the handmade teabag in the teapot before pouring in the hot water. She said nothing for a while, glancing to the time to see when the tea would be done steeping. She turned around and stared at Armin for a while. “Why Levi?”  
  
Armin bit his lip.  
  
“It’ll destroy him,” Mikasa muttered, “Eren, I mean.”  
  
Armin looked down. “I’m sorry.”  
  
“Don’t be.” Mikasa glanced to the digital clock on the oven. “Armin…”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Can I ask you something?”  
  
“Yeah, I guess.”  
  
“I mean…” Mikasa looked to the floor as she tried to find the right words. “Will you promise to answer me honestly?”  
  
Armin took in a deep breath and let it out. “I don’t really have a reason to hide anything from you now, I guess. Just don’t tell Eren.”  
  
“I won’t.” Mikasa pulled the tea bag out of the hot water, moving her head back to dodge the rising steam. “I’m sure you’ll tell Eren when you’re ready. But, back to my question… are you…” She bit her lip. “Why are you… with Levi? Is it because you actually have feelings for each other, or is it because he’s… the first guy who’s interested in you?”  
  
Armin felt his mouth dry.  
  
“Or are you doing it to get back at Eren?”  
  
“No.” Armin frowned. “I would never hurt Eren on purpose.”  
  
“I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”  
  
“What?”  
  
Mikasa put the teabag down on a large silver spoon. She put the lid on the teapot and poured two cups. “I know you have feelings for him, Eren. Honestly, Armin… it’s… painful to watch. If you’ve built up resentment over time, I wouldn’t blame you. Not one bit.”  
  
Armin stared at her.  
  
Mikasa opened the fridge and grabbed the skim milk. She poured more in her cup than for Armin and put it back.  
  
Armin stared at the table. “I don’t resent Eren. I couldn’t. It’s not his fault he feels the way he feels.”  
  
Mikasa nodded. She offered him a cup.  
  
Armin took it with a smile and brought it to his sip. He closed his eyes as he drank before putting the cup down.  
  
“Then, why Levi?”  
  
“Maybe… I mean, um… I think it started because, you’re right, he was the first guy to ever take an interest in me, and I have a feeling he did it just to get back at Eren, you know?”  
  
Mikasa didn’t reply, but Armin knew she was listening to every word.  
  
Armin went on, “But I don’t know, the more I talk to him, the more we spend time together… the more I think I kind of like him? He’s funny, and really forward, and there’s no bullshit with him. He just says whatever he feels and he’s got no tact and it’s amazing.”  
  
Mikasa sipped her tea.  
  
“I guess I kind of like him. I don’t know. I don’t want to get ahead of myself; after all, we’ve only really spent a couple days together. But he’s just, he’s… smart, I guess. I don’t know. It feels like everything ‘clicks’ and I can be myself around him. For the first time in… I don’t even remember, it feels like I’m not choking on my own breath.”  
  
“It’s nice…” Mikasa said slowly, “To… see you happy.”  
  
Armin sipped his drink some more.  
  
“Whatever it is, between you and him, I think it would be best to keep it from Eren until you’re sure you two are serious about each other.”  
  
Armin nodded. “Yeah, I agree.”  
  
“You know how…” Mikasa’s voice trailed off as she glanced to the side.  
  
Eren entered the room with a smile. “Hey buddy, when’d you get here?”  
  
Armin chuckled. “Not long ago.”  
  
Eren took a seat next to him and stole Mikasa’s mug of tea (it was obvious she didn’t want it anyway) and drank about half of it. “So how did that date go with the special someone guy boy?”  
  
Armin shrugged. “It was nice…”  
  
  
  
“I like your place,” Armin said as he leaned on Levi.  
  
Levi slipped an arm around Armin’s waist. “You’ve got the whole fucking couch and you want to crush me?”  
  
Armin looked at him. “Are you complaining?”  
  
Levi muttered something or another as he looked away.  
  
Levi’s apartment was a small thing, downtown, but it was spotlessly clean and kind of cozy-looking. Armin instantly fell in love with it when he walked in for the first time, several hours ago. Now they were drinking hot chocolate while watching shitty reality shows.  
  
“So um.”  
  
Levi glanced at the blond.  
  
“Mikasa and I talked about it.”  
  
“How… did that go?”  
  
“She’s… surprisingly happy about it?”  
  
Levi nodded slowly. “She’s sensible.”  
  
“Yeah.” Armin leaned into Levi’s neck, nuzzling the crook. “But it kind of… made me think, about stuff. I mean she was asking questions and stuff, and um… I mean I answered them as honestly as I could, but sometimes I didn’t know the answers… and it kind of sort of maybe made me want to kind of ask you…”  
  
“Ask.”  
  
“Why are you… sort of, dating me?” Armin leaned away to look at Levi’s face. “Are we dating?”  
  
“We go on dates,” Levi said with a shrug. “I guess that would mean we’re dating, yeah.”  
  
“Are you… my boyfriend?”  
  
“Sure. If you don’t mind, I guess.”  
  
“But um.” Armin smiled. “Why?”  
  
“Why?”  
  
“Why are you my boyfriend?”  
  
Levi shrugged. “Because?”  
  
Armin frowned.  
  
Levi sighed. “Fine, I’m your boyfriend because… you’re smart, and funny, and you’re a brat but not in a bad way. You’re a brat without being a shitty brat, and you’re cute and shit, yeah I don’t fucking know.” He chugged his hot chocolate. “You shit.”  
  
Armin grinned, but his grin slowly faded away. “Are you…” He bit his lip. “Are you using me to get back at Eren?”  
  
“Huh?”  
  
“I mean, you know…”  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow, then shook his head. “No.”  
  
“Really?”  
  
“Armin… I’m not. You’re not in my stupid living room, contaminating it with your shitty presence, just so I can get back at Eren. Eren’s long forgotten. Eren’s got nothing to do with us. We’re not about Eren.”  
  
“Oh.” Armin looked at his mug. He wanted to take another sip to busy himself, but it was empty. “But that’s why you first got with me, right? You were getting back at him?”  
  
Levi stared.  
  
“What?”  
  
“You’re a fucking moron.”  
  
“Huh?”  
  
“I didn’t dance with you at the club because I wanted to get back at Eren. I danced with you because I took one look at you and said ‘Yeah, I’d fuck that ass if he’d let me’.”  
  
Armin opened his mouth to protest, but he paused.  
  
“Armin… Don’t make me fucking spell it out for you.” He grunted. “I take it back. You are a shitty brat. You’re the shittiest brat.” He pulled away from Armin and stared him in the eyes. “I… like you, alright?”  
  
Armin blinked. “Me?”  
  
Levi rubbed his face and got off the couch. “I need a beer. Want one?”  
  
“I’m underaged…”  
  
“I know that, you fucknut. Do you want a beer or not?”  
  
“Um… sure.”  
  
“Done with your hot chocolate?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
Levi took both mugs.  
  
Armin watched him leave and come back a minute later with two bottles. He took the one offered to him and he stared at it before taking a slow sip. He made a face as he swallowed, dry and bitter washed over his tongue.  
  
“Not a girly drink, but it’s alcohol.” Levi took his seat next to Armin and slipped an arm around the blond’s waist. He pulled him in close and nuzzled the side of his head. “Maybe it’s only been a couple days, but I think I like you, so I’m keeping you around. I don’t have any other reason.”  
  
“Really?”  
  
“Look. You’re hot. You have a nice personality. You can fucking dance like a prince raised by four hookers, and you’re fun to text throughout my shitty day. That’s it.”  
  
Armin smiled. “Okay.”  
  
“Good. You fucknutt.”  
  
Armin smiled and sipped his beer again. The taste of beer reminded him what the taste of regret was, so he put the bottle down on the coffee table. He turned to Levi and brought their lips together.  
  
Levi closed his eyes, smiling into the kiss before it broke. “Where did that come from?”  
  
“I don’t know.” He moved away and then cuddled up on Levi’s side. “You never came by my work place, you know?”  
  
“I’m not into sweets.”  
  
Armin smiled. “Not all of the ice cream flavours are sweet, you know?”  
  
“Really?”  
  
“Mhm.”  
  
“Huh. I guess I’ll drop by.”  
  
  
  
Armin didn’t actually expect Levi to drop by. He was slurping the last of a strawberry milkshake through a straw when he saw the man walk in out of the corner of his eyes. He tossed the cup in the trash and walked up to the counter. He bounced up and down. It had been six days since he’d last seen Levi, so he was a little excited.  
  
And from the smile on Levi’s face, Armin couldn’t help wonder if he felt the same way.  
  
“What can I get you?”  
  
“That apron’s fucking cute on you,” Levi pointed out. “It really is bright pink.”  
  
“You like it?” Armin tilted his head. “Do you want one for yourself?”  
  
Levi’s eyes narrowed.  
  
Armin chuckled and wiggled his hips. “What can I get you?”  
  
“Um…” Levi looked at the menu up top. “A milkshake, I guess?”  
  
Armin walked over to the frozen yogurt tubs. “Which flavour do you want?”  
  
Levi looked through the display glass and frowned. “I don’t like sweets… Do any of them taste like sadness?”  
  
Armin rolled his eyes with a smile. “The dark chocolate and espresso are both bitter… I technically shouldn’t, but I can mix them together if you want?”  
  
“Hmm.” Levi stared at them. “The colour of shit. How symbolic.”  
  
Armin smacked his hand over his face.  
  
Levi smirked. “Sure, yeah. That sounds fine.”  
  
Armin quickly got to work. He blurred by the machine and began mixing it up with the milk. It didn’t take him long, and in record time he had the drink ready. “Here!” As he put it down on the counter, his eyes widened. Behind Levi, two customers were walking in.  
  
Mikasa and Eren.  
  
“Armin!” Eren called out.  
  
Levi turned around.  
  
Eren’s eyes drifted from him to Levi.  
  
Armin swallowed hard.  
  
“Oh.” Eren looked away for a moment. “Hey.”  
  
Levi sipped his drink. “Hey.”  
  
Armin noticed it was civil, so he calmed down.  
  
“Um…” Eren rubbed the back of his neck. “How, are you?”  
  
“Decent.” Levi licked his lips, glancing to the drink with an amused expression.  
  
“That’s good.” Eren smiled.  
  
Conversation ceased after that.  
  
Armin cringed.  
  
Mikasa stepped forward. “Raspberry milkshake.”  
  
Eren remembered why they were here and grinned at Armin. “Can I have strawberry milkshake?”  
  
Armin nodded and got to work right away. The faster he made the two desserts, the faster they would leave. But so far, everything was civil. Civil was good.  
  
“So…” Eren glanced to Levi. “Why are you still here?”  
  
Levi smiled. “My boyfriend works here.”  
  
Armin almost spilled the raspberry milkshake and hurried to make the strawberry one.  
  
“Your boyfriend?” Eren’s eyes widened. “Oh, I guess it’s been a while since we…” He coughed and looked around. “Is he in the back, or is his shift later?”  
  
Levi just laughed.  
  
Eren scowled. “Cocky shit, why are you laughing at me?”  
  
Mikasa tugged Eren’s arm. “We should go.”  
  
Armin slammed both milkshakes on the counter and hit the bell. “They’re done!”  
  
“I’m laughing at you because,” Levi didn’t finish his sentence; he just laughed some more.  
  
“Milkshakes,” Mikasa pointed out. “I love milkshakes!”  
  
Eren’s eyes glared daggers into Levi’s face. “And whose life are you trying to ruin now, anyway?”  
  
Armin slammed the bell on the counter about eight thousand times. “Milkshakes! Milkshakes are ready! They bring boys to the yard!”  
  
Levi just smiled. “I’m fucking your best friend, Eren.”


	3. III: Heat

The three of them made their way home and walked up the stairs. Mikasa pulled out her keys, unlocked the front door, opened it, and stepped in. “We’re home.”  
  
Carla walked over to the front entrance and smiled. “You guys took your time, oh!” Carla smiled. “Armin too!”  
  
Armin forced a smile. “Yeah, Eren gave me a ride.”  
  
“That’s great.” Carla nodded. “I was just about to start dinner. Maybe you three could help me out?”  
  
“We don’t have to feed Armin,” Eren muttered. “He’s fine with eating leftovers off the floor.”  
  
Carla’s eyes widened. “Eren!”  
  
Mikasa looked away.  
  
Armin sighed. “Sorry.”  
  
Eren rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” He kicked his shoes off and walked past his mom, going straight to his basement and slamming the door shut behind him.  
  
Carla frowned and looked over her shoulder. She turned to Armin and then looked at Mikasa. “What happened?”  
  
  
  
“Levi,” Carla repeated for the fourth time as she chopped the carrots. Armin and Mikasa were helping her prepare the stew, since the three of them almost always helped with dinner when they could. “Can I…” Carla took a breath before continuing, “Could I just, ask why you’re dating… Levi, of all people?”  
  
Armin moved his fingers carefully as he sliced the green onion diagonally. “Because I like him.”  
  
“Oh.” Carla raised her cutting board and guided the diced carrots into the stew. “How long have you liked him?”  
  
“Um… not until after they broke up.” Armin grabbed another green onion and did the same to it. “We bumped into each other about a week or two ago, and we just spent some time talking and I met up with him a couple times…”  
  
Carla grabbed a celery stalk and smiled. “Okay.”  
  
Armin paused his knife. “I’m sorry.”  
  
Mikasa looked over her shoulder. “For what?”  
  
“For…” Armin closed his eyes. “For being me, and always being a burden and a nuisance on all of you.”  
  
“Don’t,” Carla punctuated the single word by aiming the knife at Armin. “Don’t you ever feel sorry for being you.”  
  
“But Carla…”  
  
She went back to chopping. “Grisha and I… we’ve been so happy, actually, that you’ve been happier. You’re smiling more, laughing more. And if it’s because you found someone else, that’s more than just great. You… you won’t have all your problems solved by finding someone, of course not, but to see you so happy… We’re just happy you found someone, else.”  
  
Armin didn’t have to ask to know she meant Eren. “Levi’s funny, and actually really… sweet. He just disguises all his good intentions in shit jokes because he doesn’t want people to think he’s sweet.”  
  
“Yes,” Carla agreed. “There are a lot of… undertones, in what he says. I think that’s why Grisha liked him.”  
  
“Yeah!” Armin smiled. “Everything he says is like those word puzzles Grisha used to buy me, but at the same time he’s just so straight-edge and curt and he calls it as it is and…” Armin’s smile disappeared and he swallowed hard. “Carla, are you… disappointed? In me?”  
  
“No.”  
  
Armin blinked. “So… you’re okay, with it?”  
  
Carla took a deep breath. “Well… I think so. I’m not… I may not be jumping for joy, but I’m not upset about it. I know he’s older, but I let Eren date Levi so it’s only fair that you’re allowed to date someone his age too. But, you know… I was your age once too. I know older men can be, sexy.”  
  
Mikasa muttered, “Oh my God.”  
  
“But, Armin sweetie, but… just, do you know why he’s dating you?”  
  
“Because he likes me.”  
  
“Are you sure this isn’t a…” She turned to Mikasa. “What do they call it…? Rebound? Is that the word?”  
  
“Yes,” Mikasa answered simply.  
  
“Rebound,” she repeated. “Or, maybe he’s just immature and wants to hurt Eren… because he did succeed.”  
  
Armin cringed. “I thought so too at first, but… but he says he likes me, and I think I believe him. I’m so ready to accept that he’s using me but… when I think about it, he just spends so much time with me, just me, no one else but me, and we’re always smiling and laughing and I think sometimes he’s spending too much time with me to be just a rebound or just some way to get back at Eren. I think he likes me. I know we’ve been together just a short while, but we just… we ‘click’, you know? And it’s, so nice…”  
  
Carla nodded slowly. “As long as you’re happy, and safe, I approve.”  
  
  
  
Dinner went by decently. Eren refused to say a word, and Armin was quiet. Instead, Grisha and Carla carried the conversation. Mikasa talked twice as much as usual, mostly to help them fill in the silence. But Armin was happy they ate and it was over. He went to his room, which was really the guest room they permanently gave to him, and sat on his bed. He pulled out his phone and scrolled his contacts. When he saw Levi’s name, he hit call and brought the phone to his ear. It rang several times.  
  
 _“Hey.”_  
  
“Hey!” Armin grinned. He heard Levi laugh on the other end and he blinked. “What?”  
  
 _“Nothing… you’re just. You’re so excited to talk to me… it’s nice.”_  
  
“Well, of course I am. It’s you.”  
  
 _“What’s up?”_  
  
Armin forced himself to frown. “I’m so fucking mad at you.”  
  
 _“Huh? Why? What did I do? Oh. Right. Yeah. Eren.”_  
  
“Mmhmm.”  
  
 _“I’m sorry…”_  
  
“Are you?”  
  
 _“Yes, I am… Well, no. I’m not sorry Eren almost pissed his pants—That was fucking funny!—but, uh, yeah… I’m sorry I upset you.”_  
  
Armin did his best to hold his frown, but it melted into a smile. “Alright… I believe you, I guess.”  
  
 _“Do you forgive me?”_  
  
“Not really. Maybe. Probably. But um, there was something else I kind of wanted to talk to you about, actually. It’s about Eren’s family… I kind of told them, since you know. Carla seems okay with it, I think. Uh… I overheard her talking to Grisha, he seemed to take it in strides, didn’t mind. Mikasa’s supportive. And Eren… Well.”  
  
 _“Yeah… Well, at least now you don’t have to sneak out.”_  
  
“Yeah. But I’m still mad at you.”  
  
 _“Cool. I want to see you tomorrow, though. Drop by my work place, okay?”_  
  
“Where do you work?”  
  
 _“I’ll text you the address in the morning, gotta head to bed now. Early bird tomorrow.”_  
  
“Awww.” Armin smiled. “Sleep well.”  
  
 _“Mhm. You too babe.”_  
  
Armin’s cheeks flushed red. “N-Night.”  
  
  
  
The next day he got up, showered, pulled his hair into a ponytail and tried to dress as nicely as he could. He felt good about himself. For the first time, Armin Arlert felt good about himself. He went down the stairs, just in time for Grisha to turn around and offer him a plate of waffles. “Thank you.”  
  
Grisha smiled. “Enjoy. I’m just about to start round two.”  
  
Armin took his usual seat at the table, next to Eren and across from Mikasa. “I better eat quickly.”  
  
“Just eat leftovers,” Eren mumbled.  
  
“Eren,” Carla hissed.  
  
“Eren,” Mikasa spoke up. “You already made that joke.”  
  
Armin took it with a grain of salt, knowing his best friend needed to let it go and get it off his chest. He poured syrup on his waffles and took a small bite. He smiled and nodded. “This is amazing!”  
  
“You’re welcome,” Grisha called out.  
  
Eren looked over at Armin.  
  
Armin looked up at Eren, forking more waffles in his mouth.  
  
Eren kept looking at Armin.  
  
Armin kept looking at Eren, forking more waffles in his mouth.  
  
“Do you even like him?”  
  
Mikasa rolled her eyes.  
  
Armin chewed and swallowed and nodded. “Yes.”  
  
Mikasa moved some hair out of her eyes. “I like the ponytail, Armin.”  
  
Armin looked at her and smiled. “Thank you.”  
  
Eren huffed. “Are you going out?”  
  
“Later, yeah.”  
  
Carla looked up from her plate. “Where?”  
  
“Levi’s work place.”  
  
Carla smiled. “Where does he work?”  
  
Armin opened his mouth to answer, but, “I don’t know.” He looked at Eren, knowing his best friend would have the answer.  
  
“I don’t know either,” Eren admitted with two blinks. “Hm… he never invited me to his work place…”  
  
“Don’t be jealous,” Mikasa muttered.  
  
“I’m not!” Eren slammed his hands on the table. “It’s just! Suspicious…”  
  
“I’m going around noon,” Armin said. “I have to be there by two, but it’s near the bridge, and they closed the walkway on Jane Street, so I have to take the long route around.”  
  
  
Eren frowned. “I can give you a ride.  
  
Armin felt his stomach churn, but he knew saying no would only cause more problems.  
  
  
  
It was a slight awkward drive, nothing was said for almost fifteen minutes before Eren sighed. “So, did he just start texting you asking for your ass?”  
  
“No.”  
  
“Then how did you start talking to him?”  
  
“We bumped into each other and talked.”  
  
Eren frowned. “Where did you meet him?”  
  
“At a club.”  
  
“A club?”  
  
“Rivers, the gay club with the blue lights.” Armin anticipated the next question. “Annie gave me a fake I.D. I could use.”  
  
“Oh.” Eren nodded. “Can I see it?”  
  
“You’re going to throw it out the window.”  
  
Eren pursed his lips. “N-No… I’m not.”  
  
“We’re best friends. We’ve been best friends for years. I can practically read your mind, Eren.”  
  
“Then why the fuck didn’t you read it when Levi rammed your ass and fucked you?”  
  
“We haven’t fucked,” Armin clarified.  
  
“Shut up, you slut.”  
  
“I’m a virgin, Eren.”  
  
“Virgin slut.”  
  
Armin rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky I know you don’t mean that.”  
  
Eren sighed. “You’re right… I don’t. I just.” He paused to turn right. “Why? Why did it have to be Levi?”  
  
“We just got along, I don’t know.” Armin looked out the window. “I’m sorry.”  
  
“Isn’t there a rule about how you’re not supposed to date someone else’s ex?”  
  
“Eren, please.” Armin had enough. “Can’t you be happy for me?”  
  
“No. No I fucking can’t.” Eren glared at him. “You can’t ask me to be happy for you.”  
  
“Keep telling yourself that.”  
  
“Leftovers! He’s fucking leftovers! You’re fucking leftovers.”  
  
Armin rolled his eyes. “And _why_ is he leftovers?”  
  
“Because he’s had a boyfriend so he’s leftovers!”  
  
“Wouldn’t that make you leftovers too?”  
  
Eren opened his mouth and then frowned. “Shut up!”  
  
“Focus on the road,” Armin muttered. “Don’t get into an accident because you want to yell at me. You’ll lose your novice permit.”  
  
“Yeah yeah, whatever.” Eren turned and looked around. “Should be around here… What’s the number?”  
  
“Ten-fourteen.” Armin looked out the window and realised evens were on his side. “That one!”  
  
Eren looked over and blinked. “Arm’… is that a?”  
  
“Wow,” Armin muttered. “Wait, doesn’t Historia work here?”  
  
Eren blinked. “Maybe we should ask him if this is the right place…”  
  
  
  
“Weeeeeevi.”  
  
“Don’t pull my hair!” Levi suddenly smirked. “Not until you’re age of consent, at least.”  
  
“Levi,” Erwin warned.  
  
“Sorry.” He ruffled the boy’s hair. “What is it, Jean?”  
  
The four year old pouted. “Petwa’s playing with Mawco…”  
  
“Petra,” Levi corrected, “And Marco.”  
  
“But Wevi!”  
  
“Levi.”  
  
“Wevi!”  
  
“Levi.”  
  
“Wevi!”  
  
“Jean,” Levi said slowly, “Can you say Levi?”  
  
Jean focused harder than any focuser had ever focused before. “Rivai.”  
  
Levi pursed his lips and looked over his shoulder. “Erwin. Is it nap time yet?”  
  
“No, not for another ten minutes.”  
  
“Well,” Levi said, “Gosh diggity darn it.”  
  
“Wevi!”  
  
Levi sighed. “Listen, Jean. Petra and Marco are allowed to play together.”  
  
“No!”  
  
“Why not?”  
  
“Because… Mawco’s my fwiend, and he’s shpeshial.”  
  
“Special.”  
  
“Yeah!” Jean’s eyes lit up. “That!”  
  
Levi took another deep breath. “Why don’t you ask if you three can play together? Like a threesome.”  
  
Erwin called out, “Levi!”  
  
Jean pouted. “But… I just wanna play with Mawco.”  
  
“Marco,” Levi corrected.  
  
“Mawco.”  
  
“Marco.”  
  
“Mawco.”  
  
“Marco,” Levi repeated before rolling his R’s. “Can you do that?”  
  
Jean focused harder than any focuser had ever focused before, again. “Relish.”  
  
“There you go! Well… kinda.”  
  
“I don’t like relish on my hot dogs,” Jean explained, “So he’s Mawco.”  
  
“Just… go play.” He pushed Jean towards them and the kid waddled over.  
  
Marco’s eyes lit up when he saw his best friend. “Hi Jean!”  
  
Jean kissed Marco’s cheek and turned to Petra. “He has cooties now!”  
  
Petra ran away, screaming, arms flailing.  
  
Levi inhaled his rage and kept it on the inside. “Jean.”  
  
Marco shook his head. “It’s okay.” He kissed Jean’s cheek. “I like cooties…”  
  
Levi ruffled their hair and then used his ‘adult’ voice. “Jean. You have to learn to be friends with more people.”  
  
Jean hugged Marco like a teddy bear and shook his head. “No.”  
  
“Jean.”  
  
“No.”  
  
“Jean!”  
  
“No!”  
  
Marco just giggled, sucking up all the attention.  
  
“Levi?”  
  
Levi looked over his shoulder.  
  
Historia gave him a small wave. “Apparently some of my friends are here to see you.”  
  
“Good.” Levi stood up. “Okay everyone,” he called out. “It’s nap time!” There was a mix of yay’s and no’s and Levi smiled. “What if Historia read you another story?”  
  
They all cheered!  
  
Historia forced a laugh, narrowed her eyes. “Oh Levi… what a _great_ idea!”  
  
“All yours,” Levi said as he patted her twice on the shoulder.  
  
Historia kept laughing and patted her knees. “Everyone get your blankies!”  
  
Levi stayed to make sure everything went well with the nap time. Marco and Jean shared a blankie, even if it was against the rules, because every adult was powerless to stop the rage that was them being separated at nap time. When Erwin gave him a little nod, Levi gave a little wave and opened the door, took a step, and closed it behind him. He looked up, smiling when he saw Armin… but when he saw Eren, reality rushed right back to him. “Hey…”  
  
“Hey.” Armin walked over and hugged him. “You work at a daycare?”  
  
Levi pulled away and shrugged. “The hourly wage is pretty gosh darn good.”  
  
Eren blinked. “What?”  
  
“I can’t swear here,” he explained. “But you’re still a shit.”  
  
“Hey!”  
  
Armin leaned on Levi a little. “This is… definitely a new side to you.”  
  
Levi shrugged. “It’s fun… I like kids.”  
  
Armin stared at him. “What?”  
  
Eren stared at him. “What?”  
  
Levi shrugged again. “I just… like kids, alright? They’re nice.”  
  
Eren pouted. “You never told me.”  
  
“Yes, well, on our second date you told me you’d throw a kid off a balcony and feel no need to apologise.”  
  
“Well,” Eren realised that was a logical argument, “Okay…”  
  
The door opened.  
  
They all turned.  
  
Erwin stepped out and closed the door behind him. “Just getting coffee while they’re asleep.” He glanced to Eren. “Oh, this is your boyfriend, correct?”  
  
“No, we broke up,” Levi explained. “This one,” he said as he tugged Armin closer, “Is my new boyfriend.”  
  
Erwin blinked. “Oh.”  
  
Armin offered his hand. “Armin.”  
  
“Erwin.” He smiled then turned to Eren and offered his hand to him as well.  
  
“Eren.” Eren looked at him and suddenly smiled. “Hi…”  
  
“Hi.” Erwin smiled and glanced to Levi. “I’ll see you later then.”  
  
“Alright,” Levi muttered. “Just keep Jean in line, would you?”  
  
Erwin sighed. “Still a problem, I see?”  
  
“Not totally his fault… Marco’s an enabler. When he grows up, he’ll have boys around his finger.”  
  
Erwin just nodded. “I thought as much. Anyway, I should get going.”  
  
Levi nodded and watched the man walk off. “Sorry. That’s my boss. He knows everything; don’t worry about it.”  
  
Armin smiled. “Seemed like a nice guy.”  
  
“Yeah,” Eren agreed. “And he’s… kind of hot.”  
  
Levi rolled his eyes. “He’s twice your age, Eren.”  
  
“Yeah! Well! He’s twice your height!”  
  
Levi’s left eye twitched. “Look, you can go window shopping but your mom doesn’t need you bringing home a thirty year old man.”  
  
Eren frowned. “Don’t tell me what to do!”  
  
Armin put a hand on Levi’s chest.  
  
Levi glanced at him.  
  
The two made eye contact.  
  
Levi looked at Eren. “That’s right. You _cannot_ ask him out, definitely not _right now_.”  
  
Eren growled. “Just watch me!”  
  
Armin frowned. “The kids are sleeping.”  
  
“No it’s fine,” Levi insisted. “It’s soundproof. But listen… you _absolutely_ cannot ask him out.”  
  
“Watch me!” Eren repeated before storming off.  
  
Armin blinked and shook his head with a sigh.  
  
“He’s predictable,” Levi said with a smile. He pulled Armin closer and felt the blond rest his head on his shoulder. “Let’s ditch him.”  
  
“Okay but,” Armin paused. “Wouldn’t he just come right back our way? I mean, would Erwin say yes?”  
  
“No idea,” Levi admitted. “But we can slip out the side exit and lose him.”  
  
Armin smiled. “I’m trying to get on good terms with him…”  
  
“Tch.”  
  
“Levi… is your boss even into guys?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“Oh… So you think he has a chance?”  
  
“Erwin?” Levi laughed. “No. Not for a relationship. But they could both use a good long fuck. Eren’s stressed and Erwin hasn’t gotten laid since the eighteen-twenties.”  
  
Armin blinked. “Would Erwin, you know, do it with Eren?”  
  
“He’s thirty four,” Levi pointed out. “Eren might be a brat but he’s a hot piece of ass. He’s never going to get a young guy like Eren in his bed if he doesn’t.”  
  
Armin chuckled. “If you say so…”  
  
  
  
“Your table,” the waitress said as she motioned for them to take their seats. She offered them both a menu then left.  
  
Levi grabbed the napkin and placed it on his lap.  
  
Armin glanced to the left and went quiet. He stared. He stared out. There was a beep, followed by two buzzes, followed by another beep, two more buzzes, countless beeps, countless buzzes, but Armin still stared. It wasn’t until the waitress poured them glasses of water that he jumped.  
  
The waitress almost spilled as she jumped too.  
  
Levi snorted and covered his face with his hand.  
  
“S-Sorry!” Armin blushed.  
  
“It’s okay.” She smiled. “Anything to drink?”  
  
“Water’s fine,” Armin said.  
  
Levi nodded. “Same here.”  
  
She nodded and left.  
  
Armin glanced to the side again.  
  
They were at an expensive restaurant. White tablecloths, white curtains, white chairs. Everything was white except the view, an endless expanse of blue. It was a seafood restaurant on the waterfront. White and blue. Built on a pier, the open-air restaurant smelled like the salt water that surrounded them.  
  
Armin’s eyes lingered over the ocean before he remembered he was on a date. “S-Sorry.”  
  
“It’s okay.” Levi motioned to Armin’s phone, which had been placed next to his cutlery. “You have like fourteen messages.”  
  
“What?” Armin asked; but, before Levi could answer, his phone beeped and buzzed again. He grabbed it and his face soured. “It’s from Eren… He’s mad we left without him. He’s demanding we come back.” He scrolled down, skimming the messages. “Oh! Oh. Oh!” He grinned. “Apparently Erwin realised he was stranded and asked him out on a date… He says we should have fun and that he’ll talk to me later.”  
  
“Good.” Levi smirked. “Let’s put Eren aside, and focus on us.”  
  
Armin put his phone down and grinned. “Yeah, I’d like that.” He looked at the menu and flipped the page. “Anything you would recommend?”  
  
“Anything under thirty is good.”  
  
Armin laughed.  
  
“I’m not kidding, I’m paying tuition and I only work part time at that daycare. I don’t have big money. Yet.”  
  
“I know you’re not kidding,” he assured. “I just like how… forward you are. But I could chip in, pay half the bill…”  
  
“No.”  
  
“But…”  
  
“Nope.”  
  
“Why not?”  
  
“Because.” Levi leaned back in his chair. “My momma raised me right.”  
  
Arching a brow, “She told you to pay for the girl?”  
  
Levi laughed and shook his head. “I actually have two moms.”  
  
“Really?”  
  
“Mhm. Their deal was simple: If I take you out on a date, I pay; if you take me, I offer to fifty-fifty it, but those conversations usually end in chaos, and you’ll end up paying anyway.”  
  
“Oh.” Armin wiggled in his chair. “That makes sense! I like that, but… I’ve never taken you out on a date.”  
  
“Yeah. You even charged me for my milkshake.”  
  
“Discount!” Armin reminded, “I gave you a discount!”  
  
The corners of Levi’s mouth curled upwards and he let out a small laugh. “I’m teasing, shithead. It’s fine. I know you’re not used to dating, so one thing at a time, alright Mushroom?”  
  
Armin nodded and flipped the page, reading a couple items, but his eyes eventually moved back to the ocean.  
  
“Pick a meal first.”  
  
“R-Right.” Armin glanced back to the menu. “It’s just the ocean…”  
  
“Yeah, yeah. Eren told me. You two get raging watery boners over the ocean.”  
  
“Yeah…” Armin looked up. “I used to think I’d have a wedding by the ocean, actually. Um… with Eren as my groom, of course. But.” He expected his stomach to twist, but it didn’t.  
  
Levi raised an eyebrow. “But?”  
  
Armin smiled. “Don’t get jealous.”  
  
“Excuse me?”  
  
Armin laughed. “It’s okay. I’m over him.”  
  
Levi tilted his head. “Really?”  
  
“No, not really… It was a crush that lasted years. It’s not going to be a quick fix, but… I mean, we’ve only been together for a short while, but, I don’t know. I feel like I’m making progress, and I’m moving on. The thing is, he doesn’t feel that way for me, and it sucks, but I can’t make him like me, so it’s good for both of us if I move on. I just, I was so happy with pretending that it could happen. I never realised that maybe…” He looked away. “Sorry.”  
  
“Say it.”  
  
Armin sighed. “With you, I’m happy. Now, all I can think about is us… and I want to call you, all the time, but I’m so afraid of feeling clingy. But you keep bugging me whenever you want, and I’m half-tempted to call you clingy.”  
  
Levi’s left eye twitched. “What did you say, brat?”  
  
“Oh. Am I… getting under your skin?”  
  
“Tch.”  
  
Armin grinned.  
  
Levi smiled as well. “I’m… glad you like me.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“I just mean…” His eyes moved to the side as the waitress approached.  
  
“Do you know what you want?”  
  
“Yes,” Armin said. “I’ll have the grilled halibut.”  
  
“Seared ahi tuna,” Levi muttered as he offered his menu.  
  
The waitress took the menus and left.  
  
Moving some blond hair out of his eyes, Armin turned back to Levi. “You just mean what?”  
  
“Sorry?”  
  
“What you were talking about, before.”  
  
Levi shrugged, looking away. “I don’t remember.”  
  
“Liar.”  
  
Levi bit his lip.  
  
“Levi, just say it. You always make me say what I want, so you say it.”  
  
“Fine.” Levi stared at him. “I just… you’re smart and funny and good-looking and I have no idea what you’re doing with an asshole like me. Okay? Sometimes I feel like the only reason I have you is because nobody else got to you first. Are you dating me just because I’m the first guy to take interest in you?”  
  
“You… dumbass.”  
  
Levi blinked.  
  
Taking a sip of his water, Armin placed the glass down. “You’re right. Maybe I’m dating you because you were the first guy to take interest in me, but that doesn’t mean it’s the reason _now_. It doesn’t mean that’s the reason why I’m _still_ with you. You’re my best-friend’s ex. The stakes were high. I wouldn’t risk everything just because you gave me attention… The reason I risked it, the reason I wanted to see you again, is because I liked you. I liked _you,_ specifically you. I like you for more reasons than you realise.”  
  
  
  
Three days had passed until they saw each other again. Armin wasn’t worried. Levi wasn’t the type to wear his heart on his sleeve, and Armin assumed he needed time to digest their talk. He got texts throughout the three days, and a phone call on the third. He was invited to Levi’s place. Eren drove him, and gave him the key to Levi’s place the man had given him and Eren had never given back. Armin thanked him and walked up the stairs, slipped the key in the hole, and opened the door. He called out, but soon noticed another pair of shoes in the house.  
  
“Hey,” Levi called out. “We’re on the couch.”  
  
Armin took off his shoes and closed the door behind him. “Guests?” he asked, but when he turned into the living room, he got his answer.  
  
“Armin.” Erwin stood up. “You have great timing… You’re good friends with Eren, right?”  
  
Armin groaned.  
  
Erwin and Levi both blinked.  
  
“Erwin, I’m sorry, I’m not doing this. Eren spent an hour begging me to ask Levi about you and to find out what you like an all that. Just go on another date with him and find out more about him yourself, okay? Eren’s interested.”  
  
Erwin pursed his lips.  
  
Levi burst into laughter and leaned back on the couch. He tapped his knees. “Come here.”  
  
Armin smiled and walked over before taking a seat in Levi’s lap.  
  
Levi smiled. “You’re perfect.”  
  
Armin grinned and kissed his cheek.  
  
  
  
Perfect.  
  
  
  
“Here you go,” Carla said with a smile.  
  
Levi smiled as he took the cup. “Thank you.” He took a sip and swore he found bliss. If there was one regret he had about breaking up with Eren, it was Grisha’s coffee. “It’s wonderful.”  
  
Grisha suppressed his pride. “Thank you.”  
  
Armin leaned on Levi and realised everything just felt… right.  
  
“Hey, Arm’, do you know how to find the…” Eren’s voice trailed off. He flipped a page of his textbook and his eyebrows shot up. “Oh. Wait, no, I think I got it.”  
  
Carla glanced to Mikasa and the two of them smiled. Carla took a seat on the couch and smoothed her skirt. “Are you two staying for dinner?”  
  
Armin nodded. “Yep.”  
  
  
  
“Wow.”  
  
“Wow? That’s all you can say?”  
  
Levi snorted. “So this is your room?”  
  
“Yeah… So? What do you think?”  
  
Levi took a look around. “It’s as bare as your shaved balls.”  
  
Armin blinked. “How do you know I shave…?”  
  
“I don’t,” Levi admitted. “You just seemed like the type that would.” He took another look around. “What a boring room.”  
  
Armin hugged his arm and looked around. “Yeah?”  
  
“Mhm. It’s not bad, though.”  
  
“How is boring not bad?”  
  
“Because it’s like you, I guess.” Levi took another step in. “Boring on the outside, but full of surprises on the inside. You’re not the kind of person who just blurts out what they want to say. You don’t look like the type who would sneak out, get a fake I.D., date an older guy. Don’t get me wrong, you’re you and you’re a fucking wild little shit, but you don’t show it.”  
  
Armin grinned and walked over, turning Levi around to press their lips together.  
  
Levi broke the kiss. “Loser.”  
  
Armin tilted his head. “Maybe I am.”  
  
“Tch.”  
  
“I know what you’re doing.”  
  
“What am I doing?”  
  
“You insult me when I get cute with you, don’t you?”  
  
Levi pursed his lips.  
  
“I know your tactics.”  
  
Levi laughed. “Fucking brat.”  
  
Armin tugged Levi’s arm. “Spend the night?”  
  
“No way.” Levi shook his head. “Things went well today, with your family, but I’m not pushing my luck.”  
  
Armin nodded. “Okay.”  
  
“Okay?”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
“You’re not going to whine like a little bitch?”  
  
“Well, I’m disappointed, but there’s no sense in whining since I know you’re making the right move.”  
  
Levi stared at Armin for a while before he leaned over. He saw Armin close his eyes, and he closed his own. Their lips met and he kissed softly.  
  
  
  
“Hey…”  
  
Levi was about to leave when he looked over his shoulder.  
  
Eren crossed his arms. “You… you like him, though. Right?”  
  
Levi turned around. “Yeah. A lot.”  
  
“Okay.” Eren nodded. “Just… promise me something. Don’t hurt him.”  
  
“I… can’t promise that.”  
  
“Why not!?” Eren snapped.  
  
“People naturally hurt each other, okay?” Levi shrugged. “I’m going to hurt him, he’s going to hurt me. I can’t promise I can’t but… I can promise I won’t do it on purpose.”  
  
Eren chewed the inside of his cheek before he sighed. “Okay… and make him happy.”  
  
“I’ll try.”  
  
“He’s been, really happy with you. Just. Yeah. Be good to him, okay? Be the best you can be, even if that’s not much.”  
  
“Fucking brat.”  
  
Eren laughed. “So… are we cool?”  
  
“For Armin’s sake, yeah.” Levi ran a hand through his air. “You’re a nice guy, it just didn’t work out between us.”  
  
“Yeah,” Eren agreed. “But um, so, about Erwin…”  
  
Levi rolled his eyes.  
  
  
  
A week had passed. The two of them walked along the waterfront, arm in arm, Armin leaning on Levi. They walked along the waterfront, Armin’s eyes glued to the water as the salty smell seemed to satisfy him.  
  
“Armin.”  
  
Armin looked forward and smiled. “Annie.” He broke away from Levi and hugged her.  
  
Annie hugged back and then pulled away, glancing to Levi, then to Armin again. “So everything worked out?”  
  
“Yeah. Thank you. I met a guy.”  
  
“I see that.” Annie smiled. She offered her hand. “Annie, one of his friends.”  
  
“Levi.” Levi shook her hand.  
  
Armin grinned. “Annie is the one who got me the fake I.D.”  
  
“Oh.” Levi raised an eyebrow. “I should thank you.”  
  
“It’s fine.” Annie shrugged. “I’ve noticed he’s always been in a good mood lately. So no need. Anyway, I’ve got to head off. Nice to bump into you, I guess. Later.”  
  
“Later,” Armin called out as she walked away.  
  
Levi watched her leave. “You’ve been in a good mood lately? Am I the cause of that?”  
  
“Shut up,” Armin muttered. “Why did she have to say that? That’s so embarrassing…”  
  
Levi examined him. “Tell me about it.”  
  
“Nah, it’s nothing new. I just like you… I still have my issues, I guess. I’ve just, with you… you’re…” Armin shrugged.  
  
Levi leaned over and stole a kiss.  
  
Armin’s cheeks warmed and he smiled.  
  
“Want to stop for ice cream?”  
  
“No way.” Armin cringed. “I drink like four milkshakes a day at work. Way too much.”  
  
“Hm. Then how about a burger?”  
  
“Levi, we just had dinner.”  
  
“Is that a no?”  
  
Armin grinned. “I could go for a burger.”  
  
“Good.” Levi cupped his face. “I’ll take you where we had our first date.”  
  
“Sure. I’d like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! <3


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